ECIT-176190122 UNIT 4 WHOS IN CHARGE OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY?1 Driven by the telecommunications revolution, the global economy is like a speeding train that keeps getting faster, says Thomas Friedman1, the New York Times foreign policy columnist. “Whats worse,” Friedman writes, “no one can slow the train down, because the world economy today is just like the Internet: everybody is connected but nobody is in charge.” 1纽约时报对外政策专栏作家托马斯弗里德曼指出，全球经济受到电信革命的驱动，就像一列正在飞驰的列车一样发展愈来愈快。弗里德曼还写道：“更糟糕的是，没有人能让该列车减速，因为今天的全球经济就像互联网一样，人人与之相连，但没有人能控制它。”2 The idea that the global economy is out of control has a certain appeal to those who feel left in the dust by corporate mega-mergers, down-sizing, monolithic chain stores, ever-morphing financial markets, and an emerging culture that seems alien to human values.2面对公司大合并（并购）、正在裁员的大规模连锁店、不断变化的金融市场以及一种正在兴起的、似乎有悸人类价值观的文化，一些人感觉已经落伍，全球经济正在失控这一论点对于他们颇具吸力。3 But unlike Friedman, I have a pretty good idea whos in charge. They are trade and finance ministers of the wealthy nations, leaders of multi-national manufacturing and finance firms, and high-level staff of institutions like the International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization (WTO). A good number of them will be meeting in Seattle at the end of November, when the WTO holds its third ministerial meeting. High on the agenda will be the decision whether to launch a new “millennium” round of comprehensive trade negotiations. Many people who are concerned about the impact of globalization will have their eyes on Seattle. 3但是，与弗里德曼不同，我很了解谁控制着全球经济。他们就是富裕国家的贸易及金融部长、跨国制造公司和金融公司的领导人以及像国际货币基金组织及世界贸易组织(WTO)等机构的高级官员。他们中的许多人将参加定于l 1月底在西雅图召开的第三届世界贸易组织部长级会议。会议的首要议程是决定是否启动新一轮全面广泛的“千年”贸易谈判，许多关心全球化冲击的人们都将会关注西雅图。4 There are lots of reasons to be concerned. When leading policy-makers and economists speak about the booming global economy and the benefits of free trade, they too often ignore the people who are losing out. The CEOs of Microsoft and Boeing, co-chairs of the Seattle Host Committee for the WTO meeting, are among the winners. But the form globalization has taken has increased the gap between rich and poor nations. According to the United Nations Development Program, “the income gap between the richest fifth of the worlds people and the poorest fifth, measured by average national income per head, increased from 30 to one in 1960 to 74 to one in 1997.” Nearly 90% of all economic activity takes place in the rich nations where only 20% of the worlds population lives. The result of globalization, says the UNDP in its latest Human Development Report, is “a grotesque and dangerous polarization between people and countries benefiting from the system and those that are merely passive recipients of its effects.”4这里有许多因素值得关注。主要的决策者和经济学家们在谈沦急速发展的全球经济以及自由贸易的好处时，经常忽略那些失败者。赢家中包括微软和波音的首席执行官们，他们将联合，他们将联合担任本次世界贸易组织西雅图会议接待委员会的主席。但是，已经形成的全球化形态加大了富国与穷国之间的差距。据联合国开发计划署披露，“按人均国民收入计算，世界L最富裕的五个国家与最穷的五个国家之间的收入差距从1960年的30:l增加到1997年的74:l。” 近90的经济活动发生在仅生活着世界人口20的富国中。联合国开发计划署在最近的人类发展报告中指出： 全球化的结果是“受益于该体制的人群和国家与那些被动接受其结果的人群和国家之间将形成危险的两极分化”。 5 Inequality is also growing within nations, and globalization is a key factor. Since 1977, according to a new study from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the income of the wealthiest one percent of Americans has risen 120%, while the income of the poorest sixty percent has actually declined over the same period. Forbes reports that the richest 400 Americans now control more than $1 trillion in personal wealth. The Economic Policy Institute concludes that globalization and related shifts from industrial to service employment account for about one-third of the growth in U.S. wage inequality over the past generation.When employers are free to site their activities anywhere in the world, it is no surprise that jobs shift to locations with lower wages, less respect for human rights, and weaker environmental and public health protections. “Ideally, youd have every plant you own on a barge,” was the way General Electrics CEO put it, describing how his company moved a factory from Mexico to Korea in only 45 days.5各国内部的不平等现象也在增长，而全球化是一个关键因素。预算与优惠政策研究中心的一项新的研究表明，自1997年以来，占全美人口1的最富者，其收入增长了120，而最穷的60人口的收入在同一时期反而下降了。据福布斯杂志报道，最富的400个美国人现在控制着1万亿美元以上的个人资产。经济政策学院的结沦是：经济全球化以及与其相关使就业从产业向服务业转变占了上一代美国人的工资差异增加额的大约1/3。当雇主们可以在世界各地自由地选择他们的活动地点时，工作转向那些工资水平低、人权状况差、环境与公共健康保护不利的地区是不奇怪的。通用电器公司的首席执行官在描述他的公司仅用了45天就把一工厂从墨西哥迁了韩国时说：“最理想的方式是，你所拥有的每一个工厂都在一艘大货船上” 6 And when large corporations are as big as medium-sized governments (GEs annual sales are about the same as Australias and Brazils federal budgets), it is no surprise that global commerce is organized to meet corporate requirements.6当大公司和中等国家一般大时(通用电器公司的年销售额大慨相当于澳大利亚和巴西的联邦预算)，全球贸易按公司的需要来组织就不足为奇了7 Without rules in place that create enforceable procedures to protect workers interests, the environment, and human interests that do not appear on corporate balance sheets, the global economy runs like a race to the bottom